North Wales Police were last night checking lorries on the A55 at Ewloe as part of a nationwide crackdown on heavy goods vehicles operating illegally.

Operation Mermaid, a joint operation with HM Revenue and Customs and the Vehicle & Operator Services Agency, has previously caught drivers with dangerously overloaded vehicles, worn out tyres, and a raft of other infringements.

Today, a North Wales Police spokesman said officers were still in the process of going through paperwork from the operation and would provide an update when it was available.

Speaking during the last operation, Sergeant Tony Gatley from the Commercial Vehicle Unit, said: “The number of offences detected during the operation shows how vital initiatives such as this are, as companies and drivers continue to disregard the law.”